MARCUS TIMMONS: A FOUR-YEAR PHENOM

One of the top dynasties in the history of Missouri high school basketball was spearheaded by a rail-thin player who performed like a magician on the court.

Marcus Timmons, in fact, was something of a Magic Johnson-like player in Southeast Missouri basketball circles, leading Scott County Central's Braves to four straight Class 1A state titles during his prep days.

The Timmons-led run was part of an amazing seven consecutive state championships won by the Ron Cookson-coached Braves from 1984-91. That still stands as a state record, as does Scott Central's 12 total titles under Cookson, who coached numerous great players during his tenure.

But it's doubtful anybody was better than the 6-foot-8 Timmons, who burst on to the scene as a freshman in and helped lead the Braves to an undefeated season in 1987-88.

While Timmons wasn't the No. 1 star on his first Scott Central team, it didn't take long for him to assume that role as he earned all-state honors his final three seasons, capped by the state's player of the year award as a senior.

The Braves lost just once during Timmons' final two prep seasons, including another undefeated campaign as a senior in 1990-91.

Timmons, a prep All-American, could have likely played for any college program in the nation but he took his all-court skills to nearby Carbondale, Ill., where he had four more impressive seasons at Southern Illinois.

Timmons started all four years at SIU, helping lead the Salukis to one NIT and three NCAA Tournament berths. He finished his college career as SIU's fourth all-time leading scorer and ninth all-time leading rebounder.

And Timmons' career wasn't done after that. Following his days at SIU, Timmons took his talents overseas, where he has been one of the top professional players in Australia for the past several years.